


No Need for Protection

by BlackwaterVial



Category: Metal Gear
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bodyguard, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-05
Updated: 2015-11-15
Packaged: 2018-04-30 05:35:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5152247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackwaterVial/pseuds/BlackwaterVial
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John has spent his whole life on the battlefield. When he gets the mission to play bodyguard for an important politician for four weeks he's slightly overwhelmed. Trying to adjust to a more or less civilian lifestyle while protecting his target proves to be more challenging than he'd expected.</p><p>Bosselot Bodyguard AU with The Phantom Pain era John and Adam.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Arrival

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 1. In which John is discontent.

John frowned when the car pulled up to the entrance of the estate. The sheer display of wealth was almost breathtaking and John wasn’t sure what to think of it. The neatly mowed grass, the carefully cut bushes and the clean white walls stood in hard contrast with the dirty streets and collapsed buildings he was used to. Spending your whole life on the battlefield leaves quite a mark on you and John had never known anything else. A soldier was what he was supposed to be, what defined him. And yet he was sitting in a stretched limousine in front of what had to be the biggest mansion he’d ever seen, while wearing a cheap suit he’d gotten in some thrift shop instead of his usual military fatigues. When the chauffeur opened the door John realized he was supposed to get out of the car and as he stepped onto the clean pavement he felt distinctly out of place. For a second he considered just turning around again, but he couldn’t really pull out now, could he? He had made a promise to the Boss, after all. She was the only reason he was standing in front of this monstrosity of a house instead of crawling through the mud in Afghanistan with his comrades at his side.

\---

It was after an especially hard mission that his mentor and partner approached him with a serious expression on her face.

“Jack”, the Boss said, calling him by the nickname only she used. “How are you feeling?”

He pulled up an eyebrow. “Well, considering that we narrowly escaped death and let three of the targets we were supposed to extract get shot, I’m feeling alright.”

When she only nodded absentmindedly John realized something was off.

“Are you okay, Boss? You seem kinda distracted.”

“I have a favor to ask of you.”

Slowly John became a bit suspicious and the Boss noticed that.

“You won’t like it. But someone has to do it and you’re our best option.”

“Boss, you know I’ll do whatever’s asked of me. I’m a soldier. Loyal to the mission. That’s what we’re supposed to be, right?”

The Boss gave him a tight nod and turned around, looking in the direction of the rest of their unit.

“You’re going to leave the battlefield for a while.”

\---

The wide entrance door was pulled open and John stepped from the harsh wind that was howling outside into the warmness of the foyer. The interior wasn’t any less impressive and lavish than the front, with large portraits of people he didn’t know on the walls and luxurious carpets on the floor. They looked so expensive that John hesitated for a moment before stepping on them.

Large windows let in the pale light of the gloomy evening, tinting the hall in an almost melancholic grey color. Multiple doors left and right of the hall indicated other rooms lurking behind them and a wide staircase led to the second floor. This was just ridiculous, which person needed this much space to live? When he was lucky he got to spend the night under a roof in a small room after a day on the field, but mostly he and his unit just slept out in the open and it was good enough. What did all this wealth matter when from one day to another it could all be gone, burned down or stolen or whatnot. John never thought much of possessions anyway. All he could truly call his own was a short knife and a modified MK22 tranquilizer gun he carried with him everywhere. Since most of his missions required a stealthy approach he preferred the quiet, nonlethal variant of the weapon. Reflexively he reached for the gun that was even now safely tugged away under the waistband of his pants. He would never admit it, but he missed the reassuring presence of the Boss at his side.

\---

“An undercover mission? In America? How is the protection of one person more relevant than fighting for the safety of thousands?”

“Jack, you have to understand. This is important in the greater scheme of things. What we’re doing here, what we’re fighting for, is ultimately irrelevant…”

“How can you say that?” John felt anger rising up inside him. This was not at all what he'd imagined this favor to be. Leaving the war behind, returning to civilization was not what he'd signed up for. Fighting was all he could do. He wasn’t accustomed to a civil life, nor did he want to be. “And our unit? Do you expect me to just leave them behind?”

“John, listen to me.” Her face hardened, the lines in it seemed deeper than before. “This man, he is important. Not just for our whole operation, but for me.”

“What-“

“Please. I cannot explain it to you now. Do you trust me, Jack?” The Boss’ tone changed from harsh to almost gentle. John averted his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Of course.”

“Then please, do this. If not for the sake of the mission, then do it for me.”

John’s eyes widened in surprise. All the years he’d known the Boss he’d never seen her like this. There was no way he could refuse her request.

\---

“Hello, and welcome Mr…?” he heard a light voice calling out from behind him. He turned, seeing a blond woman with a ridiculously low neckline coming his way. She smiled, her arm extended and he took a hesitant step forward and shook her hand. She looked at him expectantly and he realized he hadn't given her an answer. He cleared this throat.

“John. Just…John.”

“Alright, John.” Another smile. “I’m Eva. I’m supposed to give you a short tour around the house before you meet with your client.”

John didn’t really feel like seeing any more of this garish house, but he thought it would be probably rude to decline and so he followed Eva into one of the rooms on the side. They were just as distasteful as the rest of the mansion and John stopped himself from sighing. This was going to be his hardest mission yet and he didn’t know if he was up for it. By the looks of it the person he had to play bodyguard for was a smug millionaire without any sense of reality. John failed to see his importance in the ‘greater scheme of things’. But who was he to question the Boss?  
When he looked back at Eva he found her staring at him with a questioning look and he realized that she must have asked him something.

“Sorry, could you repeat that?”

“I was just wondering what you were doing before this. You sure don’t look like your usual everyday bodyguard.” She let her eyes wander over his form and he felt slightly exposed.

“What gave it away?” he muttered quietly.

She gave him a smirk. “I’m a people person. Plus your stance…it clearly suggests military.”

“If you already knew then why’re you asking?” John wondered if the woman hadn’t been briefed.

Eva shrugged. “Politeness? Small talk? Take your pick.”

They continued walking, their silence only interrupted by random explanations Eva gave him about this room or that. John barely paid attention to his surroundings, his mind still searching for the best excuse to get out of here. Only when Eva turned around to him did he realize that they had arrived in the foyer again.

“So, what do you think? Eva asked. “Pretty big place, huh?”

“Yeah.”

“Probably quite different from what you’re used to.”

“Right.”

“I see. You’re more of the strong silent type. The boss will surely appreciate that.”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh nothing, nothing”, she was grinning for some reason.

“Right”, John muttered again, not really sure what to say.

“He should be ready now. I’ll take you to his office.” She jerked her head in the direction of the wide staircase and John followed her. He didn’t quite know what to make of the woman, but she seemed alright.

“So…”, he started. “What’s your exact occupation here?”

Eva looked at him in surprise. “Did _you_ just ask _me_ a question?”

He rolled his eyes. “Almost seems like it.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. I’m kind of the…personal assistant if you like.”

He nodded, contenting with her brief explanation.

“If you’re done with everything meet me back in the foyer and I’m going to show you your quarters. Don’t worry”, she added quickly when she saw John’s unhappy expression. “They’re not inside this house. You made it pretty obvious that you don’t like it, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“It isn’t”, John assured her, glad he wouldn’t have to sleep in the oversized marshmallows they called bed around here.

“There we are.”

They had stopped in front of a large ornate door.

“Have fun.” Eva gave him another smile, maybe a bit too cheery to be real. She knocked on the door.

“Ocelot?” Her voice changed to a strangely demanding tone, something John wouldn’t have expected from an assistant to choose when speaking to their employer. “Your appointment is here.”

With a last look to John she turned on her heel and strut back through the corridor. For a short moment John thought that Ocelot was a pretty strange name, but then the door opened and he stepped into the room.


	2. Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Adam is pleasantly surprised.

Adam put down the pen and massaged his temples. He hated the dreadful paperwork more than anything about his current job. Posing as a politician was annoying enough as it was, with all the meetings and conferences and galas, but the paperwork really took the cake. He leaned back in his chair. This wasn’t exactly what he had pictured when he became a spy, but then again he’d never really received a proper job description. Manipulating people, finding out their secrets, slowly destroying them, that was what he liked.  If not for the damned paperwork…  
He'd received the mission from his superiors about three weeks ago. Pose as a politician to get vital information about the plans of the government concerning…well, everything really. The organization that sent him there, the Patriots as they called themselves, were already on the brink of having total control, but apparently there were still blind spots. Now it was Adam’s task to make those blind spots fully visible to the Patriots.

But all that didn’t matter at this point. For now he was stuck in a gigantic mansion trying to figure out the plan of some senator who had put his nose too deep into the dealings of a country that wasn’t his own. And then there was the assassination threat. It probably came with being a politician that sooner or later there were people who wanted him dead. The thread had been made pretty public, so the Patriots were forced to make a move. They knew full well that Adam was capable of defending himself, but it didn’t fit the backstory of the pencil pusher they’d made up for him. So to save his image they had assigned him a bodyguard. As soon as he had that bodyguard’s name Adam had done a background check that turned out surprisingly disappointing. He had access to all kinds of databases, the massive system of the Patriots included, but there was little to be found about this man called ‘John’, not even a last name. All he could find was that the man in question had spent his entire life on various battlefields around the world, which was may be the reason why there were no real records about him. Still, it left Adam frustrated and annoyed. He was always on top of things, knowing the slightest bit about even his smallest employee, but this John…for all he knew his newly assigned bodyguard could be a spy himself. But for now Adam had no choice but to play along, mimicking the boring little politician with no clue of how to defend himself. A knock on the door pulled him out of his thoughts.

“Yes?”

The door opened and a blonde woman stepped in.

“What is it, Eva?”

“He just got out of the car. Do you want me to bring him here immediately?”

Adam let out a sigh. “Show him the house first. I still need to sort some things out.” A lie.

Eva shot him a fake smile. “Of course, _Sir.”_

She was with the Patriots, too, posing as his assistant in this mission. He knew she hated having to take orders from him since they were of equal high rank, but their cover demanded it and she had no other choice. Adam took advantage of it as often as he could. They had been friendly rivals in the organization from the first day they'd met. Eva had something about her that made people fall for her act incredibly fast, but naturally her seduction techniques failed spectacularly when used on Adam and she never really accepted that. He on his side respected her as a spy but was quite annoyed with her methods, which had proven to be more helpful than his in a lot of situations. But at some point they had just accepted each other, even working together every once in a while.

Just before closing the door Eva poked her head through again. “You sure you don’t want him in here immediately?”

“And why would I want that?”

“I’ve seen him. You’ll like him.” Her fake smile turned into a mischievous grin.

Adam rolled his eyes. Eva could be positively infuriating.

“Just…take your time. I’ll have to spend more than enough time with him during the coming weeks, don’t you think I deserve a moment of alone time?”

Eva raised her hands in mock defeat. “As you wish. Enjoy your ‘alone time’.”

How did that woman manage to make everything sound dirty? He listened to the sound of her heels becoming more and more distant and let himself slump back into his chair. These were going to be some long four weeks

\---

About an hour later he heard noises in front of his door and shortly afterwards Eva called "Ocelot? Your appointment is here." Of course her tone was more than inappropriate for an assistant and despite them having decided to not use their code names she called him 'Ocelot'. She did it on purpose and he knew it. Typical. He took in a deep breath and pressed the button that opened the door.

The man who stepped into his office looked nothing like the blurred shadow on the photographs Adam had managed to find in the endless jungle of databases. Adam knew instantly that Eva had been right when she said that he would like this man. He was tall (though not quite as tall as Adam) with dark, ruffled hair, matching his beard. His right eye was apparently hurt or missing, an eyepatch now covering the spot. The most striking feature about his face, however, was the remaining left eye, colored in an icy blue that seemed to pierce right into Adam’s mind. For a split second he was at a loss of words, just looking at the stranger, admiring him. Damn. But then he regained his composure and stepped towards the man, his arm outstretched.

“You must be John. My name is Adam.”

John said nothing, only giving him a short nod and shook his hand with a tight grip. Adam let his fingertips brush over the rough texture of John's warm palm, feeling the slightest rush of excitement.

“You’ve traveled quite a way. I hope it was no inconvenience.”

“It’s a mission. Of course it’s no inconvenience.” John’s voice was dark and gruff, as if he’d barely used it in the past years.

“Mr-“, he started, but Adam cut him off with a gesture of his hand.

“Please. Adam. I’m tired of formalities here. We have to spend the next four weeks together; might as well make the best of it.”

“Alright…Adam.” John’s voice wavered for a second when he used the name, but he didn’t complain. “What are my exact tasks here?”

“Right”, Adam stepped behind his desk, pulling out a stack of papers. “You have been briefed I presume?” A nod. “And you know about the assassination?” Another nod. “Well, now my associates seem to be of the opinion that we have to take the threats seriously and assigned me protection”, he gestured towards John. “You’ll have to accompany me every time I go out into public. Drive me around, attend a few conferences and galas and whatnot. In four weeks I’ll be out of here and you can return to wherever they pulled you out of. Until then I’m afraid you’ll have to make the best out of your situation.”

“That’s all?” John pulled up an eyebrow.

“That is all.” Adam confirmed. “Don’t underestimate it, though. Look, I know this is not really your thing. I don’t like it either. But it’s how it is. Can’t change it now.”

John said nothing and Adam let out a sigh. This was going to be a hard piece of work.

“Alright. I’m attending a meeting tomorrow evening. A dinner in some hotel. Meet me at five in my office.”

“Understood.”

Adam saw John’s right arm jerk, the man obviously holding back a salute. Instead he just passed Adam a look, then turned around and walked stiffly out of the room. As soon as the door closed Adam exhaled. He hadn’t even noticed that he was holding his breath. Whatever he’d expected, this wasn’t it. Even if he’d barely spoken, there was something about John that just _captured_ Adam. He hated to admit that Eva was right, but he was actually looking forward to getting to know this John. He seemed raw and uncomplicated, a typical military man, taking no shit from anyone. Adam couldn’t deny that it sparked his excitement, working with someone who refused to see him as his superior. Maybe the upcoming four weeks wouldn’t be so bad after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be pretty slow-burn and I don't want to rush things, so bear with me! They'll get to spend more time with each other eventually


	3. Preparations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which John is overworked.

John stepped out of the office and into the hallway, now lit by warm ceiling light. His client was completely different from what he had expected. He’d imagined an old man, fat from sitting behind a desk all day, but Adam was quite the opposite. He was obviously younger than John, even though his kempt hair was already white. His face was angular, with blue eyes that had a certain kind of sharpness about them. He was taller than John, but his body type was rather lean than muscular. All in all not what John imagined a politician to look like. Adam was quite handsome actually. John shook his head. Whatever. Still an annoying pencil pusher who thought he could change the world by signing some documents.

John made his was downstairs to meet Eva in the foyer. The woman was already waiting for him with a smile on her face.

“Hello again. How did it go?”

John shortly contemplated if he should answer, then he remembered that he’d already come to the conclusion that Eva was not a bad person. “It went well I guess. Quite the character, your boss.”

Eva laughed. “That he is. Come on, I’ll take you to your quarters. We can talk on the way there.”

John nodded and followed her. As soon as they stepped out of the estate and into the clear evening he took a deep breath of fresh air that seemed to clear his head. He passed Eva a quick look before pulling out a cigar.

“Do you mind?”

“No, not at all. Go ahead.”

John lit his cigar and took a puff. “How long have you been working for him?”

She hesitated for a second before answering. “About seven years I think. He’s quite the upstart. A bit…strange, but an alright boss.”

“Strange?”

“Oh, you’ll see. Four weeks is a long time. You better get used to revolvers and spaghetti western.”

“Revolvers?”

“Yes, revolvers. Ocelot has a thing for them.”

“Ocelot?”

Eva stopped walking and abruptly turned around to face him.

“Geez, what are you, a parrot?”

“People keep asking me that.”

Eva pulled up her eyebrow. “I wonder why that is.”

“Well?” Snake asked. “Why do you call him Ocelot?”

“It’s kind of a nickname. Haven’t you seen his face? Quite feline I’d say.”

John could sense the lie through the fake gleeful pitch in her voice, but he didn’t pry. It was none of his business. And he couldn't deny that Adam did have a feline face.

“What about you, John. What have you been up to before this?”

“You already know. I’m a soldier.”

“Right. So this is your first time away from the battlefield?”

“I’ve been away a few times. But this time it’s different.”

“Because you have to play bodyguard?”

“Because I have to play a civilian.”

“Fair enough. But if you ever need help you can come to me, you know?”

John grunted. “Thanks, but I should manage four weeks on my own.”

“You say that now“, Eva lauged. “But wait until you have to deal with 10 minute long queues at Starbucks to get Ocelot his precious coffee while running late for a meeting.”

“At what?”

“Starbucks? You know, the-“, she stopped herself with a wave of her hand. “You’ll see soon enough. Anyway, here we are.”

They stood in front of a small house, not quite as ostentatious as the other building but still a bit too much for John. He turned to Eva to ask for a key and found her fishing one out of her cleavage.

“Here you go.” She tossed him the key and he caught it with one hand. “And-“, she produced another one from the same spot. “-here are the car keys.”

John pulled up an eyebrow but said nothing. He was only the slightest bit uncomfortable. Eve didn’t notice anything and just kept talking.

“You can drive a car right?”

“I drove a tank through a rain forest while being under enemy fire, I should manage a car.”

“I hope so…Remember that this is civilization. We have rules.” Somehow her doubtful tone annoyed John. He was a trained soldier who’d fought in countless battles all over the world, pretending to live a normal life should be easy for him…right?

“Ocelot already gave you your first task right? The dinner tomorrow? You know what you have to do?”

John nodded, despite not being sure what exactly he was supposed to do while Adam and his colleagues were eating.

“Alright!” The cheerful tone from which John never knew if it was real or fake returned to her voice. “I guess I see you tomorrow morning then. Unless…”

“What?”

“You need me to show you how everything works in your new home?”

“I’ll be fine. I’m not some child who’s never been alone.”

“Right, right”, she winked and John found it infuriating.

“Have a good night then.” And with that she turned and left him to explore the house.

The interior was fortunately not as luxurious and lavish as in the main building. The walls were all while and the furniture was a uniformed light brown. The living room wasn’t big, with a beige couch and matching arm chairs standing in front of a TV. Some plants were standing on the windowsill and the floor lamp in the corner emitted a friendly yellow lighting. John sat on the couch, sinking deep into the cushions. All in all he felt like he stepped right into one of the ripped posters about furniture shops he sometimes saw on half-demolished billboards in the destroyed cities he was fighting in. A strange feeling overcame him at the thought of the battlefield. If he didn’t know it better he would call it homesickness, but then again he had no real home. With a grunt he got up again and searched for a bathroom. After looking through some rooms he finally found one on the second floor. The tiles were a tasteful grey and the separating walls of the shower were made entirely of glass. If there was one thing John missed when being on the field, it was constant hot water. He quickly undressed, tossing his clothes carelessly onto the floor and stepped under the stream of warm, soothing water. The day had been exhausting, not necessarily physically, but mentally. And there was his new boss. Adam, or Ocelot, or whatever he should call him, seemed to think that the threat of assassination was nothing more than a joke. John knew his kind, looking at the world and taking everything in it for granted. He sighed and leaned with his back against the wall. Closing his eyes he let the water calm his thoughts. Four weeks. He could manage four weeks.

\---

John woke up after a restless night. The bed was too soft and the room was too warm. He stretched and his back made a very unhealthy sound. For a short second he thought he was still in a dream. But as he got up and pushed open the window to let in the fresh morning air, reality caught up to him. It was still dark outside, but far back on the horizon a small shimmer of orange indicated the sunrise. He looked around the room, his eyes slowly adjusting to the dim light. Opposite of the bed he spotted a closet. He hastily slipped into a white shirt and some sweatpants (the only things his size he could find) and made his way downstairs into the kitchen. The fridge was stocked with all kinds of food, but John just grabbed an apple, eating it in a matter of seconds and stepped outside the narrow house and into the windy morning. He was feeling a lot more comfortable without the trapping walls around him. He slipped into the shoes he left next to the door and went for a run around the estate. Maybe some little exercise would help him clear his head. The events of yesterday still clouded his mind and a little voice in the back of his head kept reminding him that he had to spend four entire weeks here, without his comrades or the Boss or the thrill of battle. He ran past a parking lot right behind the main building and couldn’t stifle a groan when he saw Eva exiting her car. He sped up, hoping she wouldn’t spot him, but it was too late. She waved, the usual fake-real smile on her face.

“John! Up already?”

He stopped reluctantly, wiping some beads of sweat from his forehead. Eva followed the motion with her eyes, an interested expression on her face.

“I’m not a fan of sleeping in”, he simply replied.

“I see. Got any plans for today?”

“Except the meeting with your- with our boss? No.”

“Well then. Enjoy your free time as long as you have it. If you want to you can stop by my office later. We can have a coffee and you can tell me about your life.” She winked. “Although I already know that the answer is probably no.”

John didn’t say anything, but of course she was right. Eva nodded knowingly and grinned.

“Your loss. See you later.” And with that she vanished into the side entrance of the Mansion. John shook his head, still not completely sure what to make of her. He continued his run, slightly more confused than before.

\---

About an hour later Eva knocked on the door to Ocelot’s office. Without waiting for an answer she entered, a broad smirk on her face. Ocelot was sitting behind his desk reading the newspaper, a bowl of oatmeal next to him.

“Eva”, he said without looking up. “What a pleasant surprise so early in the morning.” His voice was dripping with sarcasm, but Eva chose to ignore it.

“I didn’t get the chance to talk to you yesterday. How’d it go?”

Ocelot finally looked up. “What do you want?”

“Oh, come on Ocelot, just tell me. What did you think of him?”

Ocelot rolled his eyes, but Eva got her answer.

“Four weeks suddenly seems pretty short, right?” Of course she could have hidden her emotions, but this was just too good, so she allowed herself a little fun. She’d known him for over seven years now and that was more than enough time to learn about his taste in men. But her partner was still too proud to tell her anything, so she had to manage with what she had.

“Whatever. You might consider taking up jogging again,” she said nonchalantly.

“Why?” He looked at her suspiciously. Eva turned and walked towards the door. She did love making a dramatic exit.

“Because,” she opened the door. “Your bodyguard looks quite nice in a soaked through shirt.” And with that she left him to his thoughts, a tiny spark of satisfaction rushing through her as she heard his spoon clattering into the bowl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the irregular updates! Uni is keeping me busy at the moment. But the next chapter will finally include some more interaction between John and Adam.


End file.
